Tents were set up near the Dorothy Day Center in downtown St. Paul nightly during the summer months. Hart Van Denburg/MPR News Minnesota’s homeless population has become so large that places like the Dorothy Day Center in St. Paul can’t keep up.

The homeless population in Minnesota has been rising steadily since 2006. Wilder Foundation data show the numbers up by more than 30 percent since the recession began. (MPR News)

Some governments have helped homeless people by giving them homes. “Handing mentally ill substance abusers the keys to a new place may sound like an example of wasteful government spending,” writes The New Yorker’s James Surowiecki. But, Surowiecki reports this approach has saved money.

The average chronically homeless person used to cost Salt Lake City more than twenty thousand dollars a year. Putting someone into permanent housing costs the state just eight thousand dollars, and that’s after you include the cost of the case managers who work with the formerly homeless to help them adjust. The same is true elsewhere. A Colorado study found that the average homeless person cost the state forty-three thousand dollars a year, while housing that person would cost just seventeen thousand dollars.

Related Questions

If you look at much of the research, honestly, many don’t want a home.

Cathie

Not really. They don’t want a home on the terms that they are given to them. No one wants to live outdoors in MN.

CharlieQuimby

The state of Colorado, like other states, does an annual survey of communities to gauge progress and causes related to homelessness. In my county, the four highest reasons/factors contributing to homelessness in 2013 were: Medical problems; unable to pay rent/mortgage; lost job/couldn’t find work; couldn’t pay utilities.

I do know a few homeless who have given up and will probably live outside the system forever, but maybe you could cite the research that substantiates “many don’t want a home.”

BFrank

“I am for doing good to the poor, but…I think
the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in
poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. I observed…that the
more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided
for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the
less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became
richer.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

Cathie

It’s been studied over and over that you cannot maintain employment without stable housing, and you can’t get stable housing without a job. So, let’s just get people living indoors.

Jeff

How many family bridges were burned before they got to that point, besides that we have so many programs for poor people that it’s almost impossible to avoid government benefits if you have $0 income…even taking a few minutes to do taxes could net you thousands of dollars if you didn’t earn money last year.

David

It sounds pragmatic and fiscally responsible, but the article give no actual data on how much so and how it was achieved. Still if this truly works and has proven cheaper then by all means yes, let’s give it a try. Only problem I see is those self described “fiscal conservatives” will never go for it if there’s no way they can make a profit from it.

PaulJ

Yep. Vagrancy is a blight on big cities. Safe dormitories (w/services including job placements) doesn’t seem like too much to ask. I’d put the dorms in North Dakota but then I’m sort of an outside the box kinda cat.

Jim G

Yes.
Our homeless population is growing, and it’s happening to young and old. One of our biggest problem populations as highlighted last week on MPR, are mentally ill drug abusers. They are finding housing in our County Jails. Cook County was used as a national exemplar, but this is also true here in Minnesota. This is not the best solution for them or our jails. As mentioned in the introductory information, it costs less to house people in permanent housing, than putting them in jail. Although it seems counter intuitive… giving housing to the homeless is a good solution to reduce our cumulative costs spent by government agencies on our homegrown homeless population.

Pearly

Yes. I say give the homeless all of Harriet Island

PaulJ

Then they’d still be underfoot and at such a nice venue.

Jeff

No, we should give them a job doing government work. If they are simply unable to find a place of their own then as part of that government job give them a residence (deducted out of their wages of course).

This is so simple, if someone is truly disabled then by all means give them the government support they need if they can prove they are disabled in a court of law. If not then fine, we must have some street cleaning jobs, garbage pick up jobs on the side of the road or even jobs where they can wash government building windows or something…but they should earn their keep if they’re not disabled and sure give them a home but only out of their wages from a job.

CharlieQuimby

Jeff, I appreciate your comment because it recognizes the connection between unemployment and homelessness. Work is important to human dignity and self-respect, but it is harder to find when you are homeless, which consumes a surprising amount of time and energy.

I think what you would find with your scheme is that people would move to greater self-sufficiency if they also could start out with stable housing.

Yanotha Twangai

The trouble with that idea, of course, is that so many of those tasks have been outsourced to the private sector and are not thechnically government jobs. But if you’re talking about a new WPA-like program, I could support that.

C. S. Montgomery

Why not allow the Homeless to occupy the former Ramsey County jail downtown St. Paul which has been vacant for years and where needed services could be provided to those individuals.

ProsperityForRI

Providing housing for those with no homes saves so much money that doing it should be among the easiest decisions our communities have ever made.

John Q. Taxpayer

Who pays for the homes that these people obviously cannot afford? I’m already broke as it is and the last thing I need to do is pay more taxes for someone to live in a home that they didn’t work for, while I struggle to get by while living in a low-rent apartment. This is what Section 8 housing is for. No no no thanks.

Moira Heffron

Unfortunately, I have observed people waiting astonishingly long times to move on the Section 8 list. Additionally, I had someone dear to me who was eligible for Section 8, but experienced total disrespect from several landlords–no response to complaints of water leaking through the bathroom ceiling, for example. There was a presumption that if you were eligible for Section 8, you should be willing to put up with drunks banging on your door in the middle of the night or druggies hassling you in the parking lot and messing with your car. This was a hard situation for an older person with a graduate degree and some years of working as a teacher and a social worker. But it would also be a hard situation for the young mother I knew who was trying to attend college despite housing insecurity with her dysfunctional family.

Danny

This is usually one of those issues where people get stuck on the emotional hump of “giving” money or things to “undeserving” people and never make it to the societal consideration of the costs of homelessness.

Not every person is going to lose all of their issues and become a productive member of society given a home and a chance, but some will, and all it takes is a few nights in the ER/jail for the costs to start approaching that of providing bare bones shelter and counseling.

gregstaffa

I was homeless from 2009 – 2012 after getting a work injury with Northwest/Delta and losing everything. It took a toll. Sticking someone in a house simply isn’t the easy answer. I didn’t want a hand out from the government what I want is a job. I experienced nothing but red tape and failure with it came to homeless orgs. I was exploited and cyber bullied by homeless advocates. We keep looking for easy solutions that make people feel better, but the solution is the community. I have a amazing resume but homelessness creates a gap in employment. We focus and praise employers who hire vets, what about helping the homeless find meaningful work. There are many homeless out there with Amazing stories, with amazing experiences. We just need to take the time to hear them.

Scott44

“A Government big enough to give you everything is big enough to take everything away”.

val

that’s true

val barnes

The question is peculiar,it suggest that homes for poor should be a conversation. The question/statement is about the lack of humanity. Do we accept poor people? You know before the Civil Rights Movement people believed it was okay to descriminate against people of color, they even said so.Today we think and speak so badly of poor people.The Question is why can’t poor people have housing like everyone, instead of tents, jails, under bridges, abandoned buildings or separate communities.We build stadiums, expensive condo’s yet can’t find housing for those who need housing. How sad.

Mike Fratto

We have an increase in homelessness due to the greed of Wall Street and Bankers who showed they would rather take a loss on a home than work with the mortgage holder. I don’t think this have changed.

I would have to see the data, but I do believe it is cheaper to put homeless people into homes. However, one factor we need to consider is the cost of the extreme weather in Minnesota to keep housing heated and cooled.

I know there are non profit programs that provide various services and limited housing for homeless. How would this impact them? What services would be provided and who would provide those services?

I expect there are a number of vacant homes due to the mortgage crisis. I suspect that most of those building could be picked up relatively cheap. It might be possible to use a Habitat for Humanity model to give the homeless sweat equity in their new home.

Other issues would be how to handle those who lost their homes due to problems with the mortgages but now can afford to make a mortgage payment and those people who weren’t able or willing to take care of the property.

Go for it!

Betsyl

I have worked with homeless people for many years. I don’t think you can talk about homelessness without talking about the complexity of who the homeless are.
Homelessness is a side effect of the way that our society is set up.
It is easy to look at the homeless and say that they are not doing anything for them selves, but those of us who do this work every day know much differently.
Homelessness is a 19 year old girl with two children who was raised in the foster care system because her mother was an addict.
Homelessness is a 50 year old woman who has a serious mental illness but has never been diagnosed.
Homelessness is a 16 year old boy whose mother is in treatment for chemical health problems.
Homelessness is the 519 children that will sleep in shelter in Minneapolis tonight.
I help the homeless become housed but the truth is that there is not enough affordable housing for many of the people who sit in shelter, or who stay at the homes of friends and family or who live outside.
There is not one simple answer to this issue but I know that community coming together and working to address what is really going on, is the only way that change will happen.

CharlieQuimby

Betsyl, I also volunteer with the homeless in two different communities and agree with what you are saying. There are many roots and faces of homelessness, and “the homeless won’t take my advice when I try to help” is well-meaning but doesn’t address their underlying issues.

The headline on this piece should say “provide housing support,” not “give the homeless homes,” because that implies single family housing and maintaining a home/house is beyond the capabilities of some people. However, in my upper middle class neighborhood there are a number of group homes serving people ranging from severely disabled to folks who have jobs at the nearby Byerly’s. I doubt the readers of this could pick them out on a drive by.

The type and placement of housing matters greatly. For example, I have seen placing veterans in complexes with other homeless veterans work well, while placing recovering drug addicts in settings near drug users has turned out badly for people who were getting their lives together.

Michael Willemsen

Yes.

Jon Visser

Government spending on housing for the mentally ill was cut years ago. These individuals were pushed out and became homeless. Right now, there are enough empty houses that each homeless person could have 6 houses. We need to reinstate group homes to help the homeless and get them involved in work placement to build a sense of community pride and ownership. This will not only help the homeless but will create more jobs and a safer community.

Suzanne U.

Absolutely, and in my opinion, it isn’t just about the bottom line financials, or passing moral judgment on how someone else lives their life. It’s the right thing to do as human beings. Someday, we just might mature enough as a community to stop the belief and practice that those who are different, whatever that difference is-race, mental health, addiction, age, social status- deserve punishment in whatever form.

Anna

The problem is that those who are making a living and live in a nice neighborhood have the attitude “not in my neighborhood.” The mentally ill are just about in the pariah category of sex offenders when it comes to establishing group homes in stable neighborhoods.

Those afflicted with Serious Persistent Mental Illness or SPMI for short generally can cope with their illness well PROVIDED they get the therapy support they need in the form of necessary medication (anti-psychotics, anti-depressants) and periodic person-to-person therapy sessions for assessment and medication adjustment. It is when they cannot get their medications and therapy that these isolated, violent attacks occur.

The financial burden on law enforcement and local governments is enormous and growing every year. Prisons have now become de facto mental institutions and drug rehab centers.

The increase in diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and the resources needed to care for those affected by it is manageable now but when these children become adults and their parents can no longer cope, we will have to have the means to provide them with shelter and treatment. It is a crisis whose horizon is coming in the very near future.

What we lack is adequate numbers of psychologists, psychiatrists and support personnel for the mentally ill.

Unfortunately, American society will do as it has always done—wait
until it reaches crisis proportions and then respond with too little,
too late.

Rich in Duluth

Yes, this is a true moral issue. We owe it to our fellow human beings to support them when they can’t support themselves, simply because it’s the right thing to do.

But, as others have said, here, we should do more than just house them. I envision multi-story buildings in down town areas, with rooms for individuals and apartments of various sizes for families. In addition, there should be on-site professional staff to provide evaluation, on-site food preparation, life skills classes, child care, job search, appropriate clothing, and programs to help people either lift themselves out of poverty or support for those who cannot care for themselves. And, we should tax ourselves to provide this.

dissadent deacon

of course this is a no brainer

bhaskardancer

if we had spent the money on paying off all the mortgages in the united states instead of bolstering up corporations there would be fewer people homeless and a stronger economy with people able to live and go to work instead f scurrying from shelter to shelter.

Kathy

On the plus side, we need a LOT more decent homeless shelters. On the minus side, for over a year I have tried to help a very low-income person find an apartment and a job. She won’t take my suggestions; I am middle class and she lives in the culture of poverty. I have also discovered that all of her family and friends live on all the government benefits they can get, and not one of them would ever dream of actually working.

colette

I too also have a friend who lives off her 86 year old grandmother and a 74 year old friend. she’s 40 with some issues(Mother and Father both alcoholics and deceased) Goes to school for medical assistant training but refuses to work and relies on govt. assist. I don’t think she will ever work. A house they would not be able to maintain.

JQP

anyone can find them self in that “mindset” and countless thousands/millions have.

oh an injury/illness that takes you out of work for 12-18 months…, job goes, insurance coverage goes. car goes, house goes… and you are un-employable…

the federal reserve says the majority of American families couldn’t cover a sudden $400 expense … without borrowing money.

You may not be in that position,,, but recognize that most of the country is out of savings and resources.

JQP

while your anecdote may be 100% true for that person… I’ve worked with people who held jobs while living out of a car or on the street mixed with shelters.

the problem with welfare generally is that it is a cliff. you can get a lot but if you make one small step to improve yourself… you lose all of the support.

if the system was designed with partial support… so that someone who wanted to work and improve could taper down from 100% to 25% of welfare … as they improved their wage, living conditions, …. it would let them improve.

right now … most welfare is like a trap. you’ve lost your confidence and your are abandoned every time you try to exercise it.

davehoug

Folks say high marginal tax rates are a dis-incentive for executives to work. A person working themselves off welfare faces HUGE tax marginal tax rates as they lose benefits 🙂

Rich in Duluth

Yes, I know someone who is a disabled photographer and is on SSI and medical assistance. If she makes a little money selling a picture, her assistance is cut the next month. There is no incentive or practical way to move off of assistance because she is not allowed to accumulate anything. This is just wrong.

val

And… of course metal illness. Because anyone who would rather sleep on the street and not have a stable safe place to lay there head is not functioning
very well. My brother who has been homeless said some shelters for homeless people can be violent, he rather take chances sleeping outside in some hideway.

Sharon

This is a complicated issue, emotionally, legally and financially. There are some people who choose this way of life. But this is a small percentage. It is only right that we as a society intervene. There can and should be controls, perhaps conservators who manage monthly bills and so on. But we allowed our children to be homeless for decades, going back to the 1800’s. Honestly, how can this ever be right?!

JQP

yes… as a societal cost per person… as noted above…. its just cheaper and more effective. we “pay” regardless.

Daniel Gumnit

During my three years as executive director of People Serving People, I have learned that it is impossible to generalize about the causes of family homelessness. Yet it’s clear to me and the shelter’s frontline staff that three main issues are contributing to the drastic increase in family homelessness in Minneapolis and the nation. These issues are (1) the lack of affordable housing, (2) racial and socioeconomic disparities in education and employment opportunities, and (3) the cost of high-quality child care. Until we find a way to address these systemic issues we will see an ever increasing number of homeless families.

davehoug

How to support the needy without making more needy people…..Give them both a place to live AND a job. You will be picking up litter and perhaps being bussed to clean toilets in state parks but you will be employed. ASK an employer if they would rather hire a person who has been on government assistance the past year or one who has been on government assistance the past year & whose boss can say X showed up every day on time and was a good employee?

whitedoggie44

Sure, but let’s assure we categorize these people as “greedy” since they will be taking other peoples money in fhe form of higher taxes. As the radical left annoints me as greedy since I intend to hold onto more of my income and wealth, I find it interesting that no amount of taxation to support largess is ever considered “greedy.”

Rich in Duluth

And labeling the poor as “greedy” accomplishes what? And, since “greedy” means “desiring excessively”, how does this word apply to the homeless, who have, by definition, little or nothing? This word would seem to apply, more appropriately, to those who have much.

What is your, low tax solution, to the problem of homelessness? Do you see a ethical responsibility to help the needy?

whitedoggie44

As the ranks on the entitlement class increase and they expect more and more from taxpayers, yes they are very greedy. Sorry but I have little emphathy and worry more about moving toward an economy where the low income whiners become more important than the wagon pullers. If, like me you actually understand the math, you would agree.

stop the true moochers

The ranks of the entitlement class are decreasing at an alarming rate. They now only make up 1% of the population, yet hoard over half the world’s wealth. If they we not so busy whining about having to pay their fair share towards the culture and economy that allows them to accumulate such prodigious sums of money, we could wipe out most homelessness in a short time. Instead the moocher class sets up off shore dummy corporations to hide and hoard their money, while the 99% actually pull the wagon of the economy. The moocher class lives off government handouts in the form of not only tax breaks, but government subsidized employees. They fight minimum wage laws, thinking it’ll hurt their bottom their bottom line, all the while to see how their ignorance and greed is the cause of all our societal ills. I say DOWN WITH THE MOOCHER CLASS ONCE AND FOR EVER! When you meet a 1%er stab them in the eye. Maybe then they will see that they are the evil scourge upon the earth that needs eradication. DEATH TO THE 1%!!!!

See whitedummy you’re not the only one who can write useless inflammatory rhetoric that serves no purpose but to make one’s self feel better in their short sighted, selfish view. How about trying to be part of the answer and not the problem for a change?

whitedoggie44

Not correct. Do the math. If you confiscated all earned income over $250K it would barely cover obama spending. The you go after the wealth and after you spend this hoard, what is left? It is the 1% that pays the bills. If you wipe them out, we’re toast. If you do not understand the math, best to stick to subjects you understand. A society that’s puts equality of outcome ahead of freedom, will end up with neither equality or freedom.

Rich in Duluth

Your reply really doesn’t help me understand your position. You call people “greedy” and yet they have nothing, which makes no sense. And then, when I ask for clarification, you change the subject. This makes me think that, either; you don’t have a reasonable argument or are just trying to inflame the discussion or, maybe, both.

whitedoggie44

Let’s just say our brains are wired differently. I detest those who believe they can feed at the trough of government handouts with no backlash from taxpayers who fund the handouts. when there is no penalty for failure, failures proliferate. 12 trillion for poverty prevention past 40 years and yet 15% still live in poverty.

It’s is simple, if they are feeding at the trough of government handouts for extended periods of time, yes they are greedy. Someone who survives off another’s income. Someone who believes they are owed something for nothing. I prefer to believe my life experiences have impacted my reasoning.

Yanotha Twangai

What “wagon” are the Wall Street money-shufflers pulling? The only thing they’re pulling is the strings of the economy, skimming off the real work of others. There’s a difference between really earning what one receives and merely figuring out a clever way to extract profits from the economic system. I have a hard time believing that a bankster who gets a million dollar bonus has actually added a million dollars of value to the well-being of humanity.

whitedoggie44

Just curious, did you ever work on Wall Street that they are all greedy. I did for 20 years and what you do not understand is that your pension, 401k and many other investments are connected to Wall Street advisors, who face enormous pressure to meet growth targets. Keep your money in your savings acct and I will watch for you begging when you are retired. Don’t make general comments when you have zero understanding of the issues.

Yanotha Twangai

Once again, you miss the point entirely. Banksters and Wall Street executives produce nothing. Their work does does not add to the amount of wealth circulating in the economy; they merely help it circulate. It’s useful work and should be rewarded appropriately, but all their profits are derived from the productive work of others, by means of fees, interest, and capital gains. You’ll have a hard time convincing me that the work of any one bankster or Wall Streeter over the course of a year can ever be worth a million dollars. Sure, they get their money legally, but have they actually improved the overall well-being of humanity by that much? If not, in what sense have they “earned” it?

whitedoggie44

Again, please provide to me the dates and banks where you worked before you make such a broad statement. You are clueless. Enjoy poverty.

Yanotha Twangai

Once I stopped striving to have more than enough, I found contentment and true happiness. Poor? Hardly. I pity those who labor under the delusion that having more stuff will make them happier. Is that you? Sorry. Maybe someday you’ll learn.

Yanotha Twangai

It’s not greed if what you’re hoping to get is subsistence.

2014NEWDEALPLANNOW!!!

Duh, This is a no brainer…It’s 2014 not the 1930’s in the Great Depression starring FDR. We need to spend tax dollars on Domestic issues such as Housing, Jobs, and Education. It doesn’t matter how much money another human being has it could be any on of us right now on the streets. It is time now for All American Human Beings to get a life and start helping all American Human beings.

Considering that more than 1/3 of the 14000 Minnesotans without proper housing tonight are children – there is much more to consider here than employment. Those who are working are faced with a scenario in Minneapolis where they have to work approximately 90 hours per week at an average starting wage in Minneapolis to pay for an average 2 bedroom apartment, according to fair housing standards.
It’s hard to imagine a valid argument against housing. Many believe this is a moral issue, and for those that don’t the economics are clear. It is far less expensive to our community to provide housing than to perpetuate homelessness. A recent study in Minnesota demonstrated a $1.44 return on investment for each dollar spent on supportive housing.
We need more affordable housing, to get to the point where the housing stock matches the needs of the community. In addition, we need to continue to develop services that are tailored to the needs of individuals that are in housing crisis – both in terms of intensity and duration.

Jon

We should at least stop tearing down their makeshift shacks out in the woods not harming anyone because they aren’t “code”

Sue de Nim

What does justice require when there aren’t enough living wage jobs available to employ everyone who’s willing and able to work? I agree that something like a new WPA would be a good idea. Let government be the employer of last resort.

When determining a position on questions like this, I like to think in terms of “What is best for society as a whole.” As an example, if we were debating whether to offer public education today, a lot of people would start crying “Socialism!” But public education has been a great benefit to society as a whole, preparing youngsters for jobs and the ability to contribute to society as a whole. Likewise, it seems to me that providing housing for the homeless will also benefit society as a whole. Some of the homeless will be better able to seek employment; their children will benefit from being in a school long term instead of jumping from one school to another. Even if some of the homeless don’t respond to the opportunity in a positive way, being in a home is better than society having to deal with all of the problems that exist with them not in homes. And given the cost savings, providing homes seems like a no-brainer to me.